Improvement in railroad wedge-rails



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

W. M. MARTIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILROAD WEDGERAILS.

Specification forming part of Let-ters Patent No. 57,530. dated August 28, 1866.

To all whom It may concern:

Be it known that I, W. M. MARTIN, of the city, county, and State of New York, have in vented a new and Improved Railroad-Chair and Auxiliary Rail; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure l represents a transverse section of the invention. Fig. 2 is a top view of the saine. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the auxiliary rail next to the nils.

Similar letters of refeience indicate corresponding parts.

This invention consists in producing` a fastening for the ends of the rails, consisting` of a chair and wedgeshaped auxiliary rail co1nbined, which will carry the wheels ofthe engines and cars over thejoint without joltiug, and which will steady and support the rails laterally, and allow thein to be slightly depressed vertically in case ofthe sinking of the tie or sleeper, as is frequently the case in hastily-constructed road-beds.

The chair B is made in such a manner that its outer clainp, D, slopes inward, both Vertically and longitudinally, so that when it is applied to the rails a tapering socket is left to receive and hold the wedge-shaped auxiliary' rail O. The auxiliary wedge-shaped rail C lits into this socket, resting and bearing with its shoulderfequally upon the clamp D, the inside bottoni of the chair B, and upon the lower projection, H, of the rails, and also bearing laterally against and supporting the rails at their upper projections E and in the cavities or necks F, and coming up as high as the faces of the saine. (See Fig. 2.) Said auxiliary rail is slightly beveled orronnded off upon its face,

and also upon the surface g, Fig. 3, which is intended to rest upon the lower projection or flange, H, of the rails. The object of beveling the face is to allow the wheel to be taken up gradually, and that of beveling the surface g is to prevent the wedge heilig' forced or raised' out of the chair when the ends of the rails and the chair are depressed, which raising would burst the outer tlange from the chair.

The chair is fastened to the ties by spikes, one of which passes through the edge of the wedge, and also holds it in place.

Both the chair and auxiliary rail may be made ofiron or any other suitable material; but the auxiliary rail, to be durable, should be faced with steel.

The process of adjustment is very simple, the wedge being driven in or out by a blow from a hammer.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure set forth.

WV. M. MARTIN.

Witnesses v M. M. LIVINGSTON, W. HAUFF. 

